Older Adults: A1Cs Too Low?

The American Diabetes Association recommends individualized glucose control targets for people with diabetes. For some older adults in poor health, the targets for A1C—a measure of overall glucose control—should be 7.5 to 8.5 percent, higher than for healthy people with diabetes. But, in a study of 1,288 adults ages 65 and older with diabetes, researchers found that two-thirds had an A1C of less than 7 percent and 2 in 5 had an A1C less than 6.5 percent. Over half of those who reached those targets were treated with insulin or another type of drug that can cause low blood glucose. Those numbers were the same for healthy seniors and those with poor health, suggesting that some of the less-healthy participants were being overtreated, researchers say. Source:JAMA Internal Medicine, published online Jan. 12, 2015